The long-awaited slate of candidates that would receive the unparalleled financial and logistics muscle of the adminstration’s Lakas-Kampi-CMD party may not be known until the start of the filing of certificates of candidacy on Nov. 20 after the ruling coalition said yesterday it was resetting its national convention to Nov. 19 from Nov. 12.Secretary to the Cabinet Silvestre Bello III said that the Nov. 19 national convention of Lakas-Kampi-CMD would now be held in Manila instead of Cebu.
The party had anointed Defense Secretary Gilbert “Gibo” Teodoro as standard bearer but has yet to name a vice presidential
bet after its preferred candidate Interior and Local Government Secretary Ronaldo Puno recently backed out from his earlier announced vice presidential bid.
Bello said the administration party will consider any coalition with any political party but on the basis of party principles and visions.
The jockeying for the top pairings for next year’s elections has become more intricate after a major shake up in the
key National People’s Coalition (NPC) party which initially had putative vice presidential candidate Sen. Loren Legarda stating her preference to find a running mate outside of NPC that was followed by the surprise announcement recently of presidential timber Sen. Francis Escudero that he was bolting the party.
”The runningmate of Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro Jr. will be known during the national convention of the Lakas-Kampi-CMD,” Bello, who is also deputy secretary-general of the administration party, said.
Thus far, the only publicly declared tandem for next year’s elections is that of the Partido ng Masang Pilipino (PMP) of former president Joseph Estrada and Makati Mayor Jejomar Binay.
Several names were floated to pair off with Teodoro including Cebu Governor Gwendolyn Garcia, actress Vilma Santos, Legarda and businessman Manuel Pangilinan.
“Everything remains possible until it’s made public and formal ,” Lakas-Kampi-CMD vice chairman Speaker Prospero Nograles said of the possible running mate of Teodoro.
Last week Presidential Political Adviser Gabriel Claudio said that the national convention of the administration party would be held on Nov. 12 in Cebu City.
Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita said on Wednesday, however, that the national convention of the party would be held before the deadline set by the Commission on Elections (Comelec) on the filing of the certificate of candidacy, which is Nov. 30.
Ermita, who is the Lakas-Kampi-CMD interim president, said the national convention could be held before the start of the filing of certificate of candidacy on Nov. 20.
Ermita also had said the party is not closing its doors for a possible coalition with NPC led by its founder, former Ambassador Eduardo “Danding” Cojuangco Jr.
Ermita said anything is still possible in politics adding that an alliance of the strongest political parties in the country, Lakas-Kampi-CMD and NPC, is not impossible.
Ermita said the administration party is also not closing its doors for the possible tandem of standard bearer Teodoro with either Escudero or Legarda.
Ermita also said that the party will not stop Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) Chairman Bayani Fernando from pursuing his political plans to run for president in the May 2010 elections.
Ermita stressed that anyone can make any political ambition and the party will not be a hurdle to this dream of any individual.
Fernando failed get the nomination of the national executive committee of Lakas-Kampi-CMD to be the party’s standard bearer last September.
Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., meanwhile, said he is choosing between two opposition presidential bets to run with when he files his candidacy as a senator in the May 2010 elections.
Asked by reporters of the chances for him to run under the Nacionalista Party (NP), Marcos said, “I believe that it would go down to two choices,” he said referring to NP’s standard-bearer Senator Manuel Villar and former president Joseph Estrada.
Marcos is a three-term representative of the 2nd district of Ilocos Norte. He is being considered to run as a senator under Villar.
On Wednesday night, Marcos came at the convention of the Partido Magdalo, where former Cavite vice governor Jonvic Remulla was declared as the party’s candidate for the province’s gubernatorial race.
The Partido Magdalo in September already pledged its support to back Villar’s candidacy. Villar also attended the convention here, while Marcos in his speech pledged “to help” Partido Magdalo.
Asked by a reporter if he is considering to support Noynoy Aquino, he said he hasn’t called yet. “I am waiting for it but my phone has not rang yet,” he quipped.
Aquino was the son of former senator Benigno Aquino who was considered as the Marcoses’ nemesis.
Marcos however remained hopeful of uniting the opposition for the national elections.
“We are all doing our best to unify the opposition. We are trying to talk to everyone, trying to find out the issues and things like that,” he said.
“The vote for the opposition is currently split wide so the effort would be to reduce the oppostion candidates to at least three or two,” he said referring to the opposition’s presidential bets Villar, Estrada, Aquino, and Escudero.
“If two frontrunners of the opposition unite, whoever of them, that would pose a strong candidacy,” he said.
Asked who he thinks should give way for purposes of uniting the opposition, Marcos said “they are all serious candidates, they have to decide among themselves,” but with the decision of Escudero, “baka nabawasan na ng isa.”
“The next few weeks will show us exactly what the results of the negotiations and talks,” he said.
Efren B. Chavez
Source: http://www.tribune.net.ph/headlines/20091102hed1.html
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